Sugar Ray & The Bluetones

Wildcat O'Halloran Band

Fri · February 15, 2019

Doors: 6:30 pm / Show: 7:00 pm

Hawks & Reed Performing Arts Center

$20 in advance - $25 day of show

Off Sale

A night of Blues Music, Live in the Ballroom! Sugar Ray and the Bluetones is a five-piece Chicago-style blues band performing internationally at clubs and festivals. They’ve been playing their unique style of blues the world over for almost forty years. Not limited to one style, they play Chicago Blues as well as Kansas City Swing and swampy Louisiana blues. Accolades include multiple Blues Music Award Nominations including Band of the Year, Album of the Year and Song of the Year.

The Wildcat O’Halloran Band has been thrilling audiences in Western MA for over twenty years. Living Blues Magazine wrote: “Wildcat emerges as one of the most entertaining songwriters in contemporary blues… and his band doesn’t know the meaning of dull!”

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SUGAR RAY AND THE BLUETONES...
Have been playing their unique style of blues the world over for almost forty years. Not limited to one style, but able to play Chicago Blues in the style of Muddy Waters. Little Walter and Billy Boy Arnold; Kansas City Swing in the style of "Big" Joe Turner; Texas Blues like "T" Bone Walker and Freddie King; and the swampy Louisiana sounds of "Lazy" Lester-all played with the distinctive originality of band leader Sugar Ray Norcia, vocals and harmonica, guitarist Little Charlie Baty, Anthony Geraci at the piano and Hammond Organ, Michael "Mudcat" Ward playing acoustic and electric bass, and drummer Neil Gouvin.
All of the members of Sugar Ray and the Bluetones have been featured on other Artists recordings which include Hubert Sumlin, John Hammond, Johnny Winter, Otis Grand, Pinetop Perkins, The Mannish Boys, Sugaray Rayford, Debbie Davies, Duke Robillard, Ronnie Earl and many more.

The Wildcat O'Halloran Band has been thrilling audiences in Western Massachusetts for over twenty years, and is currently promoting its 13th album “Hot Pulldown"... building on the success of the last five: "That Boy Don't Play No Blues", "Midnight Service Call","Party Up In Heaven", “Cougar Bait” and “Drinkin' With the Harp Girls” each of which was played on over 200 stations, and called “crazy-fun” by the Boston Blues Society and “a great release” by the UK's Blues Matters. Living Blues Magazine wrote: “Wildcat emerges as one of the most entertaining songwriters in contemporary blues...and his band doesn't know the meaning of dull!”

The band has opened for just about every major blues artist to visit Massachusetts, from Greg Allman to John Lee Hooker to The Stray Cats, and has been backup band for Bo Diddley and James Cotton. Recently, they opened for Coco Montoya and later Duke Robillard at Northampton's Iron Horse Music Hall.

Just back from being featured at Millenium Music Conference, and host of the long-running Sunday Blues Jam in Northampton, the Wildcat (guitar and vocals) will often be accompanied by Matt “Loverboy” McManamon (Bass, vocals), “Dr. Luscious”….Emily Duff (sax), Devin Griffiths (guitar, vocals) and sometime Trailer Park drummer Jopey Fitzpatrick

Living Blues added these kudos : “the grooves are so damned infectious, and the guitar playing so stirring....The Wildcat O'Halloran Band can make you dance and make you laugh if you let it...irresistible”.... Hot Pulldown is his best-sounding CD yet!!